Thompson of Rock Hill, S.C., is a retired vice president of Springs Industries. He served on the Winthrop board for 13 years from 1992-2005, is a past chair of the Winthrop Foundation and a former member of the Board of Visitors.

At year-end, he will conclude eight years as a board member of the S.C. Technical College System, representing the state superintendent of education. He also is a board member of the Culture and Heritage Foundation and the S.C. Council on Economic Education.

The General Assembly elected Thompson in May for a six-year term, along with the re-election of two other board members, Karl Folkens of Florence, S.C., and Donna Tinsley of Columbia, S.C. They also will serve a six-year term.

Folkens, a 1978 Winthrop graduate and founding member of Folkens Law Firm, is a certified civil court mediator and arbitrator in state and federal courts, He recently finished a third term as chair of the Board of Trustees and currently serves as vice-chair. Tinsley, who came on to the board in 2004, served the past two years as board secretary. She works for the South Carolina Legislative Council and is involved in school and church-related activities.